The WNBA is not here for social activism on the job.
The league fined the Indiana Fever, New York Liberty and the Phoenix Mercury for sporting all-black Adidas T-shirts during warm-ups in solidarity with recent police shooting victims.
Earlier this week the WNBA sent out a memo to all the teams reminding them of the uniform policy after the Liberty wore the black shirts four times, including their most recent change of uniform Wednesday morning against Washington. The Fever and Mercury and Fever wore them Tuesday night.
“What’s most upsetting is the way it was handled,” said Briann January, Indiana Fever player rep. “You have a league that is 90—if not above 90 percent African American—and you have an issue that is directly affecting them and the people they know and you have a league that isn’t willing to side with them. It’s not a race issue, not an anti-police issue, not a Black or white issue. It’s a right or wrong issue.”
January continued, “When the thing in Orlando happened the league saw the NBA backed it and we went all in. Nobody had any question. They knew it was a right or wrong issue. This is a very similar thing. It’s really disappointing the league isn’t having our back on this one.”
All three teams were fined $5,000 and each player was fined $500.
In a statement given to the Associate Press, WNBA President Lisa Borders stated on Wednesday (July 20) evening:
“We are proud of WNBA players’ engagement and passionate advocacy for non-violent solutions to difficult social issues but expect them to comply with the league’s uniform guidelines.”
